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Lynked

Release date: 3 February 2014When a fighter’s path crosses with a beautiful woman, he’s positive the meeting will only end in her leaving his penthouse with sex hair and a smile—until life and the law steps in, inevitably linking their futures forever.

The accident that ended his fighting career wasn’t enough to keep former heavyweight mixed martial arts champion Devon Lynk out of the sport. His new business, Chaine Lynk, an exclusive fighting company, has made him millions through illegal gambling. Happy with his life, he never suspected it could be his downfall … until the morning after leads to something so much more than he expected, and he’s left with the weight of guilt and responsibility on his shoulders.

Veronica “Nic” Stacey made her way to Edmonton with the intention of starting life anew, but her first night in the city lands her in a stranger’s bed and things don’t quite go as planned. Waking up to find out her brother is in jail is one thing, but learning the man she slept with is also his boss is another matter altogether. With no knowledge of the city and nowhere to go, she’s left taking the only help offered: Devon’s.

With Chaine Lynk’s doors closed and Devon facing possible jail time for his involvement, reality takes a front row seat. Love and lust intermingle as he comes to learn what his business and choices have cost the girl he wants most—now he just has to fix it. But is it already too late?

by Bethany-Kris

SpicySensuality Level: Spicy

Author Bio: Bethany-Kris is a twenty-four-year-old Canadian author, mother, and lover of much. Between barking dogs, playing children, and a full time job, she’s nearly always writing something, when she can find the time. Find Bethany-Kris at www.bethanykris.blogspot.ca, on Facebook, and on Twitter.

An excerpt from Lynked:

“Hey, Jordan.”

Immediately, Nic’s older brother asked, “What’s wrong?”

Sighing quietly, she shot a fleeting glance out at the Grand Falls gorge from her apartment’s bay window. She should have known better than to call him back before she calmed herself down. There was no hiding anything from Jordan. Or maybe it was just Nic who couldn’t hide things from him. After all, because they were only a year apart in age they had grown up stuck to one another and even though he had moved an entire country away, they were still as close as ever.

“Nothing. I just—”

“Liar. You’re sniffy again.”

“Sniffy?”

A deep laugh filled the receiver. “Yeah, you get the sniffles when you cry and then you act all sniffy for hours after.”

“I do not!”

“Whatever you say, sis.”

“Did you want something?” Nic asked, trying to draw her brother away from her current emotional state.

“You called me, Veronica.”

“You called me first.”

“I can’t call my little sister for a chat when I’m bored?” When Nic didn’t respond, she heard her brother drum his fingers before he said, “Seriously, what’s wrong?” Nic didn’t know what to say. Really, it was a lot of things. Between being fired from her job at the clothing store, the sudden emptiness of her bank account, and the crazy ex-boyfriend who just wouldn’t get the fucking hint and disappear, she was ready to call it quits.

“Is Don giving you issues again?” Jordan asked, voice turning dark.

“No,” she replied. At his disbelieving noise, Nic flinched. “Okay, so he’s been around.”

“Just around?”

“He showed up at Shreds yesterday going on like he usually does…” Trailing off, Nic figured she didn’t need to say any more. Jordan would get the hint. Her ex-boyfriend was a sore topic, one she didn’t like to discuss. Don had a possessive streak, and while it wasn’t anything Nic couldn’t handle on her own, sometimes he got to be a little bit much. It certainly didn’t help that her hometown was so small everyone knew everyone else’s business. Or at least they thought they did.

Don happened to be the son of the county mayor, so his behavior was constantly being overlooked and excused. Nic, on the other hand, was the daughter of a less than favorable woman in everyone else’s eyes. A woman who had been known to sleep around, dabble in drugs, and neglect the children she’d bore.

People tended to lump Nic and Jordan in the same category as their mother without really giving them a chance. It was just assumed that Nic was a whore and that Jordan would be no better than the father who had up and left when they were only babies. It was a battle they constantly fought against, and a cycle Nic was determined to break. She wouldn’t ever be her mother. In fact, she tried so damned hard to be everything her mother wasn’t. She never touched drugs, didn’t step out of line as a teenager, and rarely took chances that would make her look irresponsible. That wasn’t who she wanted to be.

But closed-minded people were still closed-minded.

“And?” Jordan finally asked. Nic didn’t miss the tension in his tone.

“My boss wasn’t there yesterday.”

“Good.”

“Today he was,” Nic said softly. “And then Don decided to make another appearance.”

“Shit.”

Yeah, that about summed it right up. Nic had thought, when she’d explained to Don two months earlier that she was done with him and his ridiculousness, that he had finally gotten the point. Apparently, he hadn’t.

“I should have kicked his ass when I visited last summer,” Jordan muttered angrily. “I knew he was a spoiled little cock—”

“Jordan!”

“Sorry,” he mumbled, but he didn’t sound a bit apologetic. “Lemme guess, he got you fired?”

Nic exhaled shakily, feeling her shoulders get heavier from the weight. “Yep.”